WRITTEN QUESTION E-0728/02 by Michl Ebner (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Parental leave for men.
Date: 2002-03-15
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: European social policy, family policy, gender equality, parental leave

C 205 E/204

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

29.8.2002

annex onto their territory and that, as a result, during construction, the customary checks on material
quality, load bearing capacity and stability are eased or dispensed with?

3.
Is the Commission furthermore aware that in the Netherlands this state of affairs, where there are
usually no design drawings and calculations, as a result of which a number of buildings may possibly
collapse completely or partly in future, has prompted checks not only by local authorities with
responsibility in this area, but also by inspectors from the Ministry for Public Housing, Regional
Development and the Environment, as to how Van der Valk’s buildings came to be constructed and what
materials were used in the process?

4.
Is the Commission aware that there are Van der Valk branches outside the Netherlands, too, at least
21 of which are in EU Member States, i.e. 13 in Germany (some of which were originally planned on the
basis of a contract with the former GDR), six in Belgium (mostly in Flanders), one in France (Saint Aygulf)
and one in Spain (Barcarola)?

5.
In view of the scale of this problem and the possible disastrous consequences, is the Commission
prepared to be of assistance to national and regional authorities in the Member States concerned in passing
on information on this method and help detect concealed problems as quickly as possible?

Answer given by Mr Byrne on behalf of the Commission

(26 April 2002)

The Commission does not have any specific information concerning the accidents to which the
Honourable Member refers, nor has it to date been contacted or asked for assistance in this matter by
the Netherlands authorities.

Member States are solely responsible for provisions relating to the construction and safety of buildings and
for investigating any accidents resulting from a failure to comply with these provisions.

In relation to construction, the only relevant Community instrument is Directive 89/106/EEC (1), which
nevertheless only regulates construction products (2) with a view to placing them on the Community
market. The Directive in question states that ‘Member States are responsible for ensuring that building and
civil engineering works on their territory are designed and executed in a way that does not endanger the
safety of persons’.

While including mechanical
resistance and stability of construction works among the essential
requirements applicable to construction products, this Directive does not actually regulate the safety of
buildings and other completed works.

As the Community is not responsible for the safety of buildings, the Commission does not have at its
disposal any specific procedures or networks for assisting the competent national and regional authorities,
for example in identifying risk situations.

(1) Council Directive 89/106/EEC of 21 December 1988 on the approximation of laws, regulations and administrative

provisions of the Member States relating to construction products < OJ L 40, 11.2.1989.
‘Any product which is produced for incorporation in a permanent manner in construction works’.

(2)

(2002/C 205 E/215)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0728/02

by Michl Ebner (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(15 March 2002)

Subject: Parental leave for men

Parental leave has been available to women for a long time, but are mothers alone responsible for the
upbringing of their children?

29.8.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 205 E/205

There are now laws in all Member States granting parental leave to men also. However, owing to the
different emphasis placed on the importance of the issue, the advantages that fathers take of this leave
varies greatly from country to country.

Germany is currently working on an interesting approach to parental leave, whereby it would be possible
for both partners to take parental leave at the same time, with the additional possibilty of continuing to
work part-time for up to 30 hours per week. This avoids the problem of a drastic reduction in family
income and makes parental leave more appealing to men in particular.

Can the Commission say what measures it has taken so far to ensure EU-wide harmonisation regarding
parental leave for men?

Would it not be in Europe’s interest to support families by offering equal conditions to young mothers and
fathers for the care of their children?

Answer given by Mrs Diamantopoulou on behalf of the Commission

(29 April 2002)

The key measure taken so far was the adoption of Council Directive 96/34/EC of 3 June 1996
implementing the framework agreement on parental
leave concluded by the Union of Industrial and
Employers’ Confederations of Europe (UNICE), the European Centre of Enterprises with Public Participation
and of Enterprises of General Economic Interest (CEEP) and the European Trade Union Confederation
(ETUC) (1).

Clause 2(1) of the framework agreement grants both male and female workers ‘an individual right to
parental leave on the grounds of the birth or adoption of a child to enable them to take care of that child,
for at least three months, until a given age up to 8 years’. Point 8 of the General Considerations to the
agreement
family
responsibilities’.

that men should be ‘encouraged to assume an equal

further notes

share of

The Commission is at present examining the implementation of the Directive in the Member States and
intends to adopt a Communication on the matter later this year. The Commission shares the concerns of
the Honourable Member at the apparent low take up of parental leave by men. The Commission therefore
has chosen under its gender equality funding programme for 2002 the issue of reconciliation of work and
family life as a priority theme and has set out in its call for project proposals (2) a particular emphasis on
the participation of men in care tasks.

(1) OJ L 145, 19.6.1996.
(2) OJ C 23, 25.1.2002.

(2002/C 205 E/216)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0731/02

by Geoffrey Van Orden (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(15 March 2002)

Subject: Community laws

How many Community laws have been rescinded in each of the years 1999, 2000 and 2001?

Answer given by Mrs Reding on behalf of the Commission

(8 May 2002)

The term ‘Community laws’ has been interpreted as Community legislation adopted in the form of
regulations or directives. In answer to the question, the table below gives the figures for both rescinded
acts and acts which ceased to be valid during the years in question.